MBB: Lasell falls to Dean College

NEWTON, Mass. – Dean College scored 12 consecutive points with under five minutes remaining in the game Tuesday evening and ran away from Lasell College with an 86-69 victory in non-conference men's basketball action at the Lasell Athletic Center.

The game was tied (38-38) at halftime, and Dean led by just six points (64-58) with eight minutes remaining and seven points (72-65) with five minutes to go. But the 12-point Bulldog rally pushed the margin up to 19 points with 2:25 to go, and Lasell couldn't recover. The Bulldogs improve to 13-7 overall, while Lasell falls to 4-14.

The Lasers were led by junior Stefan Masciarelli (Northbridge, Mass.), who tallied 23 points, six rebounds and seven assists. Sophomore Kevin Nunez (Dorchester, Mass.) added 13 points but the Lasers shot just 35 percent as a team from the field.

Junior Jordan Booker (Waterbury, Conn.) led the Bulldogs with 23 points of 10-of-17 shooting, and classmate Sean Odum (Rowlette, Texas) added 19 points on 9-of-12 shooting as the Bulldogs shot 50 percent from the field, including nearly 60 percent in the second half. Senior Dayvon Russell (Naugatuck, Conn.) added 10 points, senior Armani Baker (Pawtucket, R.I.) chipped in with eight points and a team-high 15 rebounds, and junior Josh Croskey (Union, N.J.) contributed nine points, 10 boards and seven blocked shots.

It was a one or two-possession game much of the second half. Lasell trailed by just one (47-46) with 15:30 to play after a Nunez three-point play, and was down six points (64-58) with 7:30 to go. But the Bulldogs heated up, and junior D'caran Anderson (Compton, Calif.) and Russell drilled consecutive three-pointers to give Dean a 72-61 advantage. That lead continued to grow as Croskey scored inside and then Anderson dropped in another triple. Baskets by Booker and Odum were followed by another Anderson three-point bomb and suddenly, the game was out of reach with Dean ahead 84-65 with less than three minutes to play.

Lasell will look to rebound in its next game on Thursday, January 31, as it hosts Emmanuel College in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) game at the Athletic Center at 7:00 p.m. Dean resumes New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) action Saturday, February 2, at Newbury College.

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